Cyclooxygenases: structural and functional insights.
Cyclooxygenase (COX; prostaglandin G/H synthase, EC 1.14.99.1) catalyzes the first two steps in the biosynthesis of prostaglandins (PGs). The two COX isoforms COX-1 and COX-2 are the targets of the widely used nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, indicating a role for these enzymes in pain, fever, inflammation, and tumorigenesis. The ubiquitous constitutive expression of COX-1 and inducible expression of COX-2 have led to the widely held belief that COX-1 produces homeostatic PGs, while PGs produced by COX-2 are primarily pathophysiological. However, recent discoveries call this paradigm into question and reveal as yet underappreciated functions for both enzymes. This review focuses on some of these new insights.
Rouzer
Carol A
CA
A.B. Hancock Jr. Memorial Laboratory for Cancer Research, Department of Biochemistry, Vanderbilt Institute of Chemical Biology, Center in Molecular Toxicology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN 37232-0146, USA.
Marnett
Lawrence J
LJ
D000818:Animals; D016861:Cyclooxygenase Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology; D004194:Disease; D015971:Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic; D006801:Humans; D011451:Prostaglandin-Endoperoxide Synthases / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
D016861:Cyclooxygenase Inhibitors; D011451:Prostaglandin-Endoperoxide Synthases